Rumble at the Oak Tree News and Notes

Porsche Club of America (PCA) Club Racing Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport Trophy East series drivers competed at the highly-technical VIRginia International Raceway in PCA’s Rumble at the Oak Tree event June 23-25. On Saturday, the series welcomed a podium newcomer and ended a sprint race with light rain – making this tough track even tougher.

Tennessee PCA Region member Curt Swearingin started on Pole after qualifying first with the fastest lap time of 1:58.019 on Saturday morning. During Sprint 1, he led flag to flag in his No. 18 Advanced Collision Inc. (ACI) Motorsports entry in the Championship class.

Mardi Gras PCA Region member Alejandro Galindo came in second following his fantastic weekend at Watkins Glen International where he gained podiums for all three races in his No. 17 NOLAsport entry two weeks ago.

Series veteran Tom Collingwood gained his first-ever podium Saturday after driving his No. 69 BGB Motorsports entry to a third-place finish. Although it was only his second time on this track, he praised his team for setting up the car to perfection.

“I had to work super hard,” Collingwood said. “I had Efrin [Castro] behind me and he was super fast. He made me work really hard until the very end. The car worked fantastic the whole way through. The BGB Motorsports crew had set it up perfectly – all I had to do was drive it.”

Meanwhile, in the Masters class, NOLAsport’s John Crosby won first place with TOPP Racing’s David Walker and Kathy Mead coming in second and third, respectively.

“I had a little penalty to serve from Barber [Motorsports Park] so I started at the back,” Crosby said. “I worked my way through the field and got first in Masters and fifth overall, which I was really happy with.”

Sprint 1 Driver Quotes:

Curt Swearingin (winner, Championship) – “It was an awesome team effort today. This track is hard, but we got out there and got a good pace and we just tried to not overdrive or make mistakes. Alejandro [Galindo] had a great race – him and Tom [Collingwood] were back there battling behind me so I just tried to keep moving and pulling away. My teammate Efrin [Castro] almost got a podium – it was so close! Hopefully next time, we’re excited for him! It would be great to having ACI Motorsports up there with two podiums.”

Alejandro Galindo (second, Championship) – “I felt pretty good. Curt [Swearingin] is very, very solid so it was difficult for me to catch him. All of this improvement has been possible in such a short time thanks to NOLAsport and my coach. They’re the best.”

Tom Collingwood (third, Championship) – “This was only my second time at this track. I had to work super hard – I had Efrin [Castro] behind me and he was super fast. He made me work really hard until the very end. The car worked fantastic the whole way through. The BGB Motorsports crew had set it up perfectly – all I had to do was drive it.”

John Crosby (winner, Masters) – “I had a little penalty to serve from Barber so I started at the back. I worked my way through the field and got first in Masters and fifth overall, which I was really happy with. I have to credit the NOLAsport team – Big Bubba, Little Bubba and Kool-Aid [also known as Jason Hart, James and Ben].”

David Walker (second, Masters) – “I have been improving. I dropped 1.8 seconds in qualifying, which is tremendous for me. I started focusing on where I needed to be rather than how to get there. John [Crosby] was behind me and he was slightly faster than I was, but I fought him off most of the race. Then I dropped two wheels coming out of Turn 17 and he got by me. I was trying to go for the win – but maybe next time!”

SPRINT 2 SUMMARY

Sprint 2 started late Saturday afternoon with threatening skies, but the rain held off until the very end of the 30-minute sprint race. Swearingin once again dominated in his No. 18 ACI Clubsport entry, but he didn’t win without a battle.

“It was tough early on,” Swearingin said. “We got in there tucked in with Jim [Cox] and he made a mistake in Turn 10 so I got out in front of him.”

Crosby followed his first-place Masters win in Sprint 1 with another Masters win, plus a second-place finish in the Championship class in Sprint 2 in his No. 47 entry. Crosby’s NOLAsport teammate, Galindo, came in third in his No. 17 Cayman GT4 Clubsport entry.

“The NOLAsport team is fantastic,” Crosby said. “I thought I might make a run on Curt [Swearingin] but when it started raining, I backed down and brought the car in second, which we’re really happy about.”

In the Masters class, Crosby, Walker and Mead repeated their 1-2-3 finish from Sprint 2. Mead had an incident during the Saturday morning warm up and praised her team for setting up her car and getting her right back out there on the track.

“TOPP Racing rocks,” Mead said. “They fixed my car so that I could go out and qualify – that was huge! Thank you to my team, my coach – Price Cobb – and my teammates. I was also very glad to have two David Murry days beforehand – it really helped me learn this track.”

Sprint 2 Driver Quotes:

Curt Swearingin (winner, Championship) – “It was tough early on. We got in there tucked in with Jim [Cox] and he made a mistake in Turn 10 so I got out in front of him. Our team, ACI Motorsports did great and our coach, Cass Whitehead, has been awesome. Everybody is putting in the team effort and we are happy.”

John Crosby (second, Championship – winner, Masters) – “Old guys rule! The NOLAsport team is fantastic. Alejandro [Galindo] and I were on the second row together. He’s a little bit quicker and our plan was to just run together but he made a mistake and let me get by. I thought I might make a run on Curt [Swearingin] but when it started raining, I backed down and brought the car in second, which we’re really happy about.”

David Walker (second, Masters) – “I had a bad start and a couple of cars got by me. Tom [Collingwood] and I had a battle the whole way but I just couldn’t quite catch him. I closed on him and would get tight, but he would pull away. Then it started to sprinkle with a few laps and I didn’t want to push it.”

Kathy Mead (third, Masters) – “TOPP Racing rocks. They fixed my car so that I could go out and qualify – that was huge! Thank you to my team, my coach – Price Cobb – and my teammates. I was also very glad to have two David Murry days beforehand – it really helped me learn this track.”

ENDURO SUMMARY

Following an incident on the first turn of the first lap, drivers competed in their third event – an 80-minute enduro – on Sunday afternoon.

Swearingin swept the weekend, winning all three events at VIR. This marks the third time he has swept the Championship class out of four races in the 2017 season thus far.

“ACI Motorsports and my coach, Cass Whitehead, did a great job,” Swearingin said. “It’s a team effort – that’s how we win!”

NOLAsport’s Galindo came in second and his teammate Crosby followed in third in the Championship class. Crosby also picked up his third win in the Masters class. Crosby credited his pit stop strategy for his enduro podium finishes.

“We pitted about 20 minutes into the race to get away from the traffic and I ended up getting some great laps in,” Crosby said. “NOLAsport knew exactly what they were doing and it was a great strategy.”

Autometrics’ Craig came in second place in the Masters class.

Next up for the Clubsport competitors is a trip to Monticello Motor Club in Monticello, N.Y. July 14-16. This event marks the series’ first trip to this private motorsport country club.

Enduro Driver Quotes

Curt Swearingin (winner, Championship) – “We just want to race clean. I just thought I would lay down some laps early and check out since we were up early and get away from everything. ACI Motorsports and my coach, Cass Whitehead, did a great job. It’s a team effort – that’s how we win!”

Alejandro Galindo (second, Championship) – “I was last on the start so I feel pretty good that I placed second. I’m pretty happy. I just concentrated on my driving and not on the others.”

John Crosby (third Championship, winner, Masters) – “I got tangled up in a lot of traffic right away so we had an early pit stop, which worked out. NOLAsport knew exactly what they were doing and it was a great strategy. Thanks again to my NOLAsport team – we got a podium in Masters and Championship so we’re happy!”